One of the strongest Atlantic storms ever recorded, Irma led to the deaths of at least 41 people. That number is expected to rise.

Hurricanes can be so deadly because they often bring uncontrollable winds and flooding. Irma, for instance, was a Category 5 storm — with sustained winds of 185 mph for 37 hours at its peak — when it slammed into several Caribbean islands. At one point, wind gusts reached 216 mph, fast enough to flip over trains, rip roofs off houses, shatter windows, and suck the ocean away from shorelines.

With the invention of the electric telegraph (which made weather forecasting possible), the US National Weather Service started tracking global weather data in the mid-19th century, and established a formal hurricane warning system in 1889.

According to the 2017 federal climate change report, the scale and frequency of extreme weather events has increased over the last four decades.

Here's a look at some of the deadliest storms around the world in the past century.

Note: The following climate disasters include tropical cyclones, typhoons, and hurricanes, since meteorological classifications differ depending on the location and strength. (A storm that might be classified as a "Category 1 hurricane" in the US might be called a "typhoon" in China.)

The death toll counts are also estimations. For many large-scale disasters, it's nearly impossible to know exactly how many remain uncounted or unidentified. There's also still no widespread agreement on how to count victims if storm-related deaths occur months or years after it has passed.

Severe flooding contributed to the deaths of nearly 1,000 people, while some 2.6 million were affected in other ways, including injuries, power outages, lack of access to food or water, or home damage.

The Odisha Cyclone (1999) — At least 10,000 people

India TV

This massive cyclone swept through the eastern Indian state of Odisha, killing at least 10,000 people and leaving thousands more homeless in 1999.

At the time, it was the strongest recorded tropical cyclone in the North Indian Ocean. The storm triggered a giant tidal wave, which wiped out entire villages. Many died from starvation and water-borne diseases in the weeks after the cyclone, if rescue workers did not reach them quickly enough.

Hurricane Mitch (1998) — approximately 11,374 people

Flood victims rescued from the town of Bajo Lempa, El Salvador, descend from a helicopter in San Nicolas Lempa, 80 kms east of San Salvador, Monday Nov. 2, after former hurricane Mitch hit this Central American nation.AP

Hurricane Mitch — hitting Florida, Honduras, Nicaragua, Central America, and the Yucatán Peninsula — was one of the deadliest Atlantic hurricanes on record.

In Honduras, the slow-moving hurricane dumped up to 4 inches of rain per hour for two days, causing mudslides and mass flooding. Over 11,000 people died from the disaster, and thousands more went missing.

Severe Cyclonic Storm Three (1963) — 11,520 people

This map shows the tracks of all tropical cyclones in the 1963 North Indian Ocean cyclone season.Wikipedia Commons

Packing winds upward of 120 miles an hour, the storm triggered extreme flooding that contributed to the death of over 138,000 people.

The 1991 Bangladesh cyclone — 138,866 people

A damaged village in Bangladesh, surrounded by flooded fields, three weeks after the storm had struck.Wikipedia Commons

In late August 1991, a strong cyclone slammed into Bangladesh, killing more than 135,000 people and causing more than $1.5 billion in damage.

Up to 150 mph winds led to a 20-foot surge of floodwater across the region, completely overwhelming some islands.

Typhoon Nina (1975) — 229,000 people

The collapse of the Banqiao Dam in the Philippines. YouTube

Typhoon Nina brought severe flooding to the Philippines, causing the Banqiao Dam and a series of smaller nearby dams to collapse in 1975.

The US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimates that 229,000 people died in the disaster.

Bhola Cyclone (1970) — Up to 500,000 people

NOAA

The Bhola Cyclone was a tropical storm that struck East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh) and India's West Bengal in 1970. It reached its peak with winds of 115 mph.

Between 300,000 and 500,000 people, including approximately 100,000 fishermen, died in the aftermath of the cyclone. Most deaths were attributed to a large storm surge that overwhelmed the islands and tidal flats, wiped out villages, and destroyed crops near the Bay of Bengal.